1. Field of The Invention
The invention relates to laminate compositions (products) for use in combination with wood laminate flooring over concrete subflooring.
2. Background Art
The floor system in a building contains a subflooring and a finish flooring.
A wood floor system has wood or steel joists supporting both the subflooring and the finish flooring. The subflooring is often (e.g., one-inch thick) softwood or hardwood boards or plywood panels. The finish flooring is typically thinner and often is hardwood boards. Wood floor systems are usually used in residences or apartments.
The floor system in steel-framed buildings is typically supported by open-web steel bar joists or steel beams. The floor deck or subflooring on the bar joists or beams can be, for example, a steel deck, a precast concrete slab or panels, or a precast hollow-core concrete slab or panels.
The floor system can be a reinforced-concrete floor system. This type of floor system is used in buildings, usually multi-floor buildings. The floor system in a reinforced structure is commonly constructed in a monolithic manner with the structural framing system. The reinforced-concrete subflooring can be flat-slab construction (reinforced in two directions), flat-plate construction or slab-band construction.
The floor finish or wearing surface is located over the wood, steel or concrete subfloor. The floor finish can be wood or resilient tile or sheet. The wood floor finish can be softwood or hardwoodxe2x80x94usually oak, yellow pine or maple are used. The shapes and finishes of the wood floor finish are commonly matched flooring, plank-finished flooring, parquet flooring and wood-block flooring. The resilient flooring can be linoleum, asphalt tile, or vinyl or rubber tile or sheet.
When wood flooring is installed directly onto a concrete floor in a building, the result is a floor which has essentially no resiliency. People walking and standing on such floors often have tired and stressed feet, legs, knees, backs, etc., plus they sometimes suffer damage to their feet, knees, etc., particularly over extended and repetitive periods of standing or walking.
In the construction of buildings having concrete subfloors, it is known to install a thin layer of polyethylene film on the concrete subflooring, followed by a layer of polyethylene foam sheet on the thin polyethylene film, and vice versa, and then to install wood flooring on top of the polyethylene foam sheet layer. None of the layers or flooring are adhered to any of the other layers or flooring. The polyethylene foam sheet takes out small irregularities in the top surface of the concrete. The polyethylene foam sheet also provides some sound reduction. Slight cushioning is provided by the polyethylene foam sheet to alleviate the problems suffered by persons walking and standing on such floors.
The polyethylene film is usually in strip form and is laid down so that the strip edges overlap by a few inches. The polyethylene foam sheet is supplied to and applied by the art in the form of long strips. The installer lays two foam strips and then tapes the facing edges together, then lays another foam strip and goes through the taping operation, etc.
An object of the invention is to provide a laminated composition of polyethylene foam sheet and polyethylene film used in the installation of laminate wood floors to provide a vapor-barrier, some cushioning, smoothing out of small surface irregularities of the concrete, cost savings and increased ease and efficiency in installation. Another object is to provide a method for preparing the laminated composition. A further object is to provide a method for installing the laminated composition in laminate wood flooring on a concrete subflooring. Other objects and advantages of the invention are set out herein or are obvious herefrom to one skilled in the art.
The objects and advantages of the invention are achieved by the compositions, products, articles of manufacture and processes of the invention.
The invention involves a laminated composition of polyethylene foam sheet and polyethylene film used in the installation of laminate wood floors to provide both a vapor-barrier and cushioning.
A laminate composition of thin film of polyethylene, preferably low density polyethylene, adhered to a sheet of polyethylene foam, preferably low density polyethylene foam, by means of a very thin layer of polyethylene, preferably low density polyethylene. The polyethylene foam has a low density which is typically between about 1.2 pcf and about 2.2 pcf and preferably between about 1.9 pcf and about 2.2 pcf. The bottom polyethylene film serves as a vapor barrier. One side of the polyethylene film preferably extends beyond one edge of the polyethylene foam sheet. In one preferred embodiment a narrow tape having adhesive on both sides (i.e., double sided tape) is present on the top surface of the extruded edge of the polyethylene foam sheet (but note that the embodiment without the double sided tape provides excellent results and also is a preferred embodiment). The laminate composition is installed in a free floating manner on the concrete subflooring, with the polyethylene film or the polyethylene foam sheet contacting the surface of the concrete subflooring. The laminate composition is usually in long strips. In the preferred embodiment where one side of the polyethylene film extends beyond one edge of the polyethylene foam sheet, with the polyethylene film adjacent the concrete subflooring, the laminate composition is installed so that one edge of one strip overlies the extended portion of the polyethylene film of another strip. In this manner the edges of the two strips do not have to be taped to keep the strips from moving during installation of the laminate wood flooring, etc. Also, the result is more efficient and provides labor cost savings. But there are also similar advantages in installing the strips when the tape having adhesive on both sides is present on the top surface of the extruded edge of the first strip. A removable layer is on top of the double sided tape and it is removed when the second polyethylene strip is to be installed. Then the laminate wood finish flooring, in plank form, is installed on top of the laminate composition in a free floating manner. The laminate wood planks fit together in a tongue-in-groove manner and are glued together.
The invention, a laminate composition of a thin polyethylene foam sheet on a thin polyethylene film, is used in the installation of laminate wood floors to provide a vapor-barrier, cushioning, sound reduction, etc.
The laminate composition of the invention is a combination of sound-reducing polyethylene foam sheet and vapor-barrier polyethylene film. The laminate composition can be provided in the form of a single-roll foam/film underlayment, which reduces labor cost and time in its installation. If the foam sheet and the film were in separate form, installers would have to deal with two separate rolls and the increased labor cost and installation time. Separate film and foam sheet would make installation more difficult and costly.
The invention also involves a process of preparing the invention laminate composition, a process of installing the invention laminate composition in a flooring arrangement of a concrete subflooring and a laminate wood flooring, and such flooring arrangement which includes the laminate composition.